“Hail to thee, Pharoh Othoes the Immortal! King of Kings, Ruler of the Four Horizons, Emperor of the Sands, The Radiant Beauty, The Grand Architect, Slayer of Lions, He who wears the Six Crowns, Guardian of Kush, The Grand Hawk, Son of the Sun, The Chosen, Bringer of Light, and many, many others besides.”
The scribe swallowed hard as they set down their slate, cool sweat dripping down their face and onto the warm stones at the foot of Othoes’ golden throne.
Othoes smiled a broad, endless smile as he looked down at the prostrating scribe, wondering just how much closer the poor thing’s head could get to the floor without touching it. Watching the grovelling of servants that couldn’t even stand in his radiant presence was just so captivating…
So, he left a few more seconds of silence to fill their heart with fear before he let his response grace their ears. It was more amusing that way. “Scribe, I think that will do nicely for the engraving, even if it is a little… Shortened.”
The scribe stayed rigid at his feet, letting not a tremble rock their body.
“Have it done, scribe.”
It scrambled to its feet, giving a deep bow, before walking as fast as it could out the door. Finally, his view was yet again unspoilt, letting him view the majesty of Othpehsi, the capital of Kush, his city.
He could see it all: The grand temples to the gods, the great sandstone mansions, The Imperial Bazar, and now his latest marvel, the Pharoh’s Gardens. It reached up into the sky, nearly reaching his palace’s height. Every wall that wasn’t covered in growing plants was instead covered by beautiful paintings depicting Kush’s verdant farms and his victories over the southern nomads. A masterpiece in every sense of the word and more.
“Are you satisfied, my radiant king?”
Othoes looked over to his ever-loyal magistrate, Hammu with his smile still plastered across his face, “With the gardens? I certainly am! There is nowhere else in the four corners of the world where such a vibrant green can be seen!”
Hammu bowed, a small smile across his lips, “Indeed my pharaoh, with its carvings your name will be remembered forever more, long after your-“
Hammu stopped, his body seemingly frozen in place. He had just mentioned the one thing the Pharoh could not hear. It sent Othoes mind wandering that lead to a familiar pit in his gut opening up once more. He felt it take his heart and drop it down into the underworld as demonic thoughts started to intrude once more. They snagged his claws into his mind as they slipped in. His body slowly ailing and decaying from its perfect form, his strength sapping away till the darkness embraces him on his death bed, the darkness as his soul falls, the scales weighing his heart as he tried to recount all the sins he did not commit and missing the final one. The emptiness, the lack of anything, the death of even his soul as it was destroyed by the dog Soter as everything that made him, him, ended for all eternity. Just nothing.
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Even in the warm afternoon, the chill those thoughts made reached right into every fibre of his being.
Hammu needed to pay. He was cowering beside his throne, but it wasn’t enough! He couldn’t just make a pharaoh, no, the immortal feel that way! He- He-
“I am as ashamed as any mortal can be my Pharoh!” Hammu stammered, “I was too caught up in my awe at your new wonder to think about my words and did not give proper consideration to your title!”
The remorse in his eyes seemed genuine at least, as if that and those silvered words were enough to soothe his pain. He should do what he had done to the many others who had questioned and hurt him, send him to the hippos or the lions! But he’d also been his foremost advisor for many, many years and had always given him wise advice. Whenever he spoke about what was going on outside the capital it was of good news of the people’s admiration for him and bountiful crop reports.
Perhaps he deserved a way out…
Othoes gripped his chair and in a low and slow voice that sounded like it bore fangs asked, “And how will you pay for your crime? What can you give me that can fix this pain?”
Hammu quivered in place for a few more seconds before steadying himself, getting down into a noble, respectful kneel at the side of the golden throne. “Great Othoes, do you remember what I have told you about the gardens immortalising your soul, your name?”
The stone in Othoes’ gut started to lighten a little. He remembered, “You will never die for as long as people speak your name, and your soul will live on.” He’d said to him. Those words had kept him safe as he watched the gardens rise from their foundations and become adorned with all of its beautiful decorations… He could let him speak more…
“Well, my Pharoh, you could pursue an even greater project! One that would dwarf everything else in the known world in height and encapsulate your soul and name! Not only will people know you from the gardens, but they will also know you from your face staring down at them, the immortal! In both the spiritual and mortal realm ever-present.”
Othoes leaned on his throne, “Do you mean to suggest that I… Create a statue of myself?”
“Ah!” Hammu raised a finger, “Not any ordinary statue, the largest one in the known world and the largest that could ever be built in history! Not even Soter could wipe you away then!”
The largest that could ever be built in history…
He stroked his slim chin with a bejewelled finger. Yes, that did suit him, a descendent of the gods, forever looking out over the four horizons and the sands like a hawk as he reached out for the sun. The immortal forever looking down on his people…
“Hammu, you yet again prove to be the best advisor along the azure river and across the sands! Construction will start on this new statute immediately!”
Hammu’s eyes widened as he scrambled back to his feet, “My Pharoh, the treasury—"
“You said it was doing excellently with trade flourishing to the east and north Hammu, we have the money.”
“But the workers—”
“I have a plan for them, work must commence, I will become forever known as the king of kings!”
With that, he slapped the arms of his throne and threw himself up, arms wide as he bathed in the rays of light. It felt glorious! It felt invigorating! It was a new sense of purpose, and he knew just where it could go!
He rushed to the balcony overlooking the city. He saw the river running to the east, the farmlands around it, all the major landmarks of the city, and there to the west, a hill upon which to place his monument. A wonder of the world. “And I will have it there!”
Hammu was close behind him, taking the opportunity out of the Pharoh’s gaze to grit his teeth. “Yes, my Pharoh, it will be done…”